When Britain's new chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng stood up on stage at the Conservative Party conference yesterday, he was a lonely figure.
Only a few days earlier, his French counterpart had announced a budget that included significant spending boosts for the ministries of labour, health, ecological transition and education.
Meanwhile, Germany’s federal government is “investing in the future”, pouring billions of euros into “climate protection, digitalisation, education and research as well as the infrastructure required.” Over the summer, in a bid to get the economy back on track after the pandemic, Germany’s state-owned rail company slashed the price of rail fares – offering unlimited local and regional journeys for just nine euros a month.
